Anthony Bourdain’s Friend Claims He Died Because ‘His Heart Was Broken’

Chef Daniel Boulud, who was close friends with Anthony Bourdain, said he believes the Parts Unknown host died with a broken heart.

“His heart was broken, I think,” Boulud told Us Weekly on Wednesday at the Citymeals on Wheels 32nd Annual Power Lunch for Women in New York City. He later clarified, adding, “I don’t know exactly but I know … I know that what he did was something that was a shock to everyone, absolutely.”

Rather than focusing on how he died, Boulud, 63, is focusing on the good memories the friends shared together. That includes filming an episode of Parts Unknown on Boulud’s hometown of Lyon, France in 2014.

“Anthony, I have many memories, as a friend, as a man who could connect with anyone and make people dream about food,” Boulud told Us Weekly. “Best memory of course is when he took me to Lyon and we did a show on Lyon.”

Boulud was particularly fond of a scene where Bourdain and Boulud visited the same schoolhouse Boulud attended when he was a kid.

“He took me to the school that I grew up as a kid and we sat down with 8-year-old children at the cafeteria and talked food with the children and had a lunch with the kids,” Boulud recalled. “Tony was so impressed by the quality of the food they were serving the children and I think that touched me a lot… And the time we spent with my parents and with Paul Bocuse as well.”

Bourdain took his own life on June 8 at age 61, while filming a new episode of Parts Unknown in France with Eric Ripert. At the time of his death, he was dating actress Asia Argento and was estranged from his second wife, Ottavia Busia. He is also survived by his 11-year-old daughter with Busia, Ariane.

After Bourdain’s death, CNN aired a shortened season of Parts Unknown, made up of the final episodes he filmed before his death. The New York-set finale aired over the weekend, and included a scene of Bourdain eating what he called the “perfect food.” According to PEOPLE, the scene showed Bourdain eating hard-boiled eggs made by his friend John Lurie.

“I am grateful and honored,” says Bourdain. “Eggs, the perfect food.”

The episode featured Bourdain taking viewers on a tour of New York’s Lower East Side and ended with a montage set to The Johnny Thunders’ “You Can’t Put Your Arms Around Money.”

In September, Parts Unknown won several Emmys, including a posthumous one to Bourdain for Outstanding Writing for a Nonfiction Program.

“The one thing about this loss is it’s not ours alone, like everybody knew that guy,” executive producer Nathan Thornburgh said at the Creative Arts Emmys. “Everybody had a selfie with him, but more importantly I think everyone felt like he had spoken to them over the years and that’s helped a lot, to feel like we’re not alone.”

You can stream Parts Unknown on Netflix.